Broncos score big in All-WAC postseason honorsBOISE, Idaho ? Senior Coby Karl highlighted five different Broncos who were honored by the Western Athletic Conference with postseason honors on Sunday when he was named first-team All-WAC in a vote of the league coaches.

BOISE, Idaho Senior Coby Karl highlighted five different Broncos who were honored by the Western Athletic Conference with postseason honors on Sunday when he was named first-team All-WAC in a vote of the league coaches.

Karl (Mequon, Wisc.) earned the honor after leading Boise State in scoring (14.8 ppg) and assists (118). In WAC games, Karl upped his scoring averaging 15.3 points per game while handing out 60 assists and grabbing 4.3 rebounds per game. The first-team honor is his first and only the second by a Bronco since joining the WAC. Aaron Haynes earned first-team honors in 2004. Karl was a second-team All-WAC pick as a junior.

Thomas (Mansfield, Texas) was named the WAC Freshman of the Year after averaging 5.0 points and 1.6 rebounds per game. He earned WAC Player of the Week honors in February and saw his minutes increase to 16.6 per game in league games after averaging 10.7 minutes before WAC play started. Thomas is the first Boise State freshman to win freshman of the year honors since Gerry Washington claimed the honor in the Big Sky Conference in 1996. In addition to Thomas and Washington, the only Broncos to win the award were Chris Childs (1986), Tanoka Beard (1990) and Steve Shephard (1994).

Junior Matt Nelson (Issaquah, Wash.) and Reggie Larry (Newark, NJ) were both named to the Western Athletic Conference All-Newcomer Team. Nelson and Larry both averaged 13.9 points per game, while Nelson led the Broncos with 9.1 rebounds per game and Larry grabbed 8.1 boards per game. Nelson led the WAC in field goal percentage making 58.7 percent of his shots. In league games, Larry averaged 15.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per game, while Nelson added 13.8 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. Nelson and Larry are the first members of the all-newcomer team since Aaron Haynes was selected to the team in 2003.

Senior Eric Lane (Los Angeles, Calif.) earned a spot on the WAC All-Defensive Team. The Bronco guard averaged 9.8 points and 2.2 rebounds per game, while often being tasked with guarding the opponent’s top perimeter threat. Lane is the first Bronco to be named to the all-defensive team since Jason Ellis in 2004 and 2005.